Fortress Guard
The Fortress Guard ( ) is a type of stage enemy from Strider 2. A varied soldier unit found in Fortress Wahnen serving as the backbone of Herzog Schlange's personal army, the Fortress Guard is very similar to the original's Russian Infantryman. They are muscular soldiers wearing a German-esque military uniform with two white lines crossing their chest and a round metal helmet. Each unit has different abilities identified by the color of their uniform. The basic and most numerous soldiers in the group wield bayonet guns as their main weapon, whereas specialized units wield different weapons suited to their roles. These soldiers are direct subordinates of the Knight Leader. Information Soldier Appears in Stage 02 (Fortress Wahnen), Scenes 1, 2 and 3. The basic type of soldier in Fortress Wahnen, wearing green uniforms and wielding bayonet guns. These soldiers serve as guards around the fortress' early areas and attack exclusively up close, surrounding Hiryu and stabbing with their bayonets. As the most basic and common unit, they attack in large crowds but are otherwise an easy kill. In higher difficulties, these guards can be also seen sniping at Hiryu from the background, their projectile's landing area marked by a yellow crosshair (Scene 1 only). They can only be killed by using the long-range plasma waves from Boost mode. The red uniform variant is a rare enemy that randomly appears among the green soldiers. These act the same as the basic type, but drop red Zenny instead of blue when killed, which scores more points. Brave Bomber Appears in Stage 02 (Fortress Wahnen), Scene 3. The Brave Bomber ( )Capcom (February 22, 2014). Strider Hiryu Visual Chronicle (Japanese). Pg. 41 is an unique variation found in the fortress' Connecting Bridge. These guards wear white uniforms, eye-covering helmets with red visors, and wield a long stick with a bomb attached to one end. Much as their name implies, these enemies simply rush ahead at Hiryu with their weapon held forward, exploding if they make contact with him, killing themselves in the process. They can be killed safely or avoided completely, letting the T-54 run over them. Artillery Appears in Stage 02 (Fortress Wahnen), Scenes 1, 2, 3 (bayonet) and 5 (both) Advanced enemy type found in later areas, wearing blue-colored uniforms. The first type is identical to the green and red soldiers, and appear in the same areas. Instead of attacking up close, however, these guards keep their distance, moving back if Hiryu approaches them, prepare their guns and shoot him. In higher difficulties, these guards can also be spotted in the background, in the same way their green counterparts do (Scene 5 only). The dark blue-colored soldiers wield a missile launcher instead of a bayonet, and attack Hiryu from afar by shooting a small missile in an overhead arc. Iron Ball Guardian Appears in Stage 02 (Fortress Wahnen), Scene 1 (harder difficulties only) An unique and rare enemy, the Iron Ball Guardian ( )MVP (February 04, 2000). "Strider Hiryu 2" (Japanese). Arcadia (Vol. 2). Pg. 96. appears standing in the first rooftop of the initial area, swinging a huge spiked iron ball over his head. He remains in place swinging his weapon, blocking out Hiryu's path and throwing his mace at him if he enters the soldier's line of vision. Though more resistant than the other soldiers, this enemy can be easily killed by ducking below him and slashing away. T-54 Officer Appears in Stage 02 (Fortress Wahnen), Scene 3. A soldier of unknown name who appears leading the T-54 armored vehicle as it chases Hiryu across the Connecting Bridge. This soldier wears a higher-ranking uniform with what appears to be medals on one side of his chest, and can be seen waving a sword as the vehicle moves forward in its attempt to ram Hiryu. This soldier serves as the only weakpoint of the T-54, although actually attacking him is difficult as the tank never stops moving and he stands on its top, and jumping behind can either send Hiryu into the waters below or allow a hit as the tank drives backwards. Design Notes Early concept art for the Brave Bomber shows the enemy was initially conceived as three soldiers running together with their weapons held forward, instead of simply one. This early design was inspired and named after the Nikudan Sanyushi ( , usually translated as the 3 Brave Bombers, Three Human Bombs or Three Human Bullets), three Japanese soldiers who seemingly blew themselves up against an enemy fortification in 1932, and posthumously became war heroes in Japan, being immortalized through several films, monuments and other materials. The Iron Ball Guardian may have been based on an early, scrapped enemy known as Iron Ball the Great, a large armored knight with a huge helmet shaped like a spiked mace chained to his armor, which he'd spin around constantly to attack Hiryu.Capcom (1999). Capcom Secret File #26: Strider Hiryu 2 (Japanese). Pg. 5 References Category:Characters Category:Stage Enemies